The Effect of Non‐Invasive Brain Stimulation on the Downregulation of Negative Emotions: A Meta‐Analysis

Abstract

(1) Background: Emotion regulation (ER) is regarded as a core treatment target for depression and other mental illnesses. In recent years, non‐invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) has been ex-tensively used as an intervention for mental illnesses, but there has been no systematic review conducted regarding its effect on emotion regulation. Therefore, we conducted a meta‐analysis of the effectiveness of NIBS for emotion regulation; (2) Methods: Systematic searches were conducted in Embase, Web of Science, PubMed, and Cochrane Library. We analyzed the effects of NIBS on tasks assessing emotion regulation using a random‐effects model, and further explored the moderating role of the following factors on transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) studies by conducting subgroup analyses and meta‐regression: target electrode placement, return electrode placement, current intensity, target electrode size, and duration of intervention; (3) Results: A total of 17 studies were included. Our meta‐analysis indicated a small but significant effect of NIBS on the downreg-ulation of negative emotions. Separate analyses indicated that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) had a medium and significant effect on the downregulation of negative emotions, whereas tDCS had no significant effect. Subgroup analyses showed that the effect of tDCS was mod-erated by target and return electrode placemen; (4) Conclusions: These results indicate that NIBS had a positive effect on the downregulation of negative emotions. The stimulation protocols should be carefully considered and the underlying mechanisms should be further explored.